Each year, Girl Scouts from across our council footprint gather for the biggest STEM event of the year: TechnoQuest. The exciting day-long event provides Girl Scouts with opportunities to discover new topics in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and receive hands-on experience that leads to increased interest and future career paths in STEM fields.

Presented by Duke Energy, TechnoQuest 2023 occurred on Saturday, November 4th and was hosted at Fayetteville Technical Community College. The event received outstanding participation with 108 Girl Scouts, the Media Girlz team, 42 adults, and over 50 volunteers, mentors and facilitators in attendance. Thanks to our sponsors and various community partner facilitators, Girl Scouts had the chance to participate in a variety of STEM workshops throughout the day, focusing on topics such as rocketry, coding, chemistry and more! Continue reading for some of our favorite event highlights:

Speed Mentoring

Having a mentor is a great way to ask questions, gain knowledge on diverse perspectives, and spark interest in exciting career paths. At TechnoQuest 2023, our Girl Scouts had the chance to learn from various mentors during 3 mentoring sessions.

The first mentoring session was a STEM Professional Panel, featuring 6 panelists representing a variety of STEM fields. At the session, 8^th-12^th grade Girl Scouts were able to hear what a typical day in the job is like, and have a glimpse of what it might be like to be in their shoes should they choose to follow a similar career path

Girl Scouts in 6^th and 7^th grade participated in a Speed Mentoring session, where they had the opportunity to talk individually to over 25 different mentors on what their careers entail. This was an exciting time for Girl Scouts to inquire about their interests, and how they can be translated into a successful career.

Girl Scouts in 4^th and 5^th grade were challenged with a Minute to Win It competition with over 20 mentors from different organizations coaching them to victory. During the Minute to Win It challenge, Girl Scouts had a great time working on their teamwork, problem-solving and social skills.

STEM Workshops

One of the best parts about TechnoQuest is bringing the community together for a shared goal: building girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place. And what better way to do so than to provide workshops that teach real-life skills that Girl Scouts can take with them for the rest of their lives!

TechnoQuest 2023 included a total of 19 youth workshops and 5 different adult trainings, thanks to all of our outstanding community partners and sponsors. Throughout the workshops, Girl Scouts and facilitators had some pretty awesome experiences. Girl Scout Juniors explored how Alternative Energy works in the Solar S’mores Workshop. Campbell School of Engineering Ambassadors led a NASA Chassis Design Challenge Workshop where Girl Scouts put their skills to the test. Young Women in Bio RTP led an Engineering Next Generation Medicines workshop. And Girl Scout Seniors learned from members of the NC National Guard Cybersecurity Task Force how to become Digital Detectives, to name a few!

Some of our Girl Scout fan-favorite workshops this year were Robotics with Senior Program Director Melissa Almodovar, and Rocketry and Nature Science Pollinators workshops with Fayetteville Technical Community College. No matter which activities they participated in, Girl Scouts left feeling excited and confident with new skills on their toolbelt.

With all of the creativity, friendships, and new interests that were sparked during TechnoQuest 2023, we can’t help but be thankful for all of our community partners who helped make the day such a special time for our Girl Scouts. Thanks to presenting sponsor Duke Energy and the following community partners for all of your hard work in making TechnoQuest 2023 a success:

• ABB
• BASF
• Campbell University School of Engineering
• Fayetteville Technical Community College
• Merck
• Meredith College
• NC BioNetwork
• NC National Guard Cybersecurity Task Force
• Seneca Resources
• ShareFile
• Truist
• UNC
• Young Women in Bio RTP

For more information on Girl Scouts, STEM programming or TechnoQuest, visit our website today!